Snowbears still unbeaten

TAYLORSVILLE — Pretty it was not, but the Utah Snowbears remain undefeated in the ABA after pulling out a 102-84 victory over the Bellevue (Wash.) Blackhawks Thursday at SLCC's Lifetime Activities Center.

Alex Austin, the well-traveled brother of Utah coach Ike Austin, brought some emotional guidance to the table when the Snowbears had lost their composure and pace the 9-0 Snowbears with 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting.

Utah took advantage of Alex's experience to weather a storm when the Blackhawks cut a 20-point lead down to one with nine minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

Bellevue forward Dontay Harris was crucial to the rally, scoring 15 of his game-high 22 points in the second half to help the Blackhawks dig themselves out of the hole and have a chance to take the lead.

"He's a veteran on our team," Ike said of his brother, who has played in Portugal, France, Finland, Argentina, Poland and Israel as well as stops in the CBA after being a captain at Arizona State, where Ike also played.

"He's smart. He doesn't have the lift some of the younger guys do," but the Snowbears rely on him as a trigger man for their offense and to provide leadership, Ike said.

The leadership showed when Alex checked in along with most of Utah's first unit with the lead at one, angrily throwing his warm-up jersey to the floor at the scorer's table.

The Snowbears quickly reacted, ending a 14-2 Bellevue run with quick baskets from center Adam Parada, Curtis Millage, and Clay Tucker, and Alex added a pair of three-point plays at the end to put an emphasis on the win.

"Our guys came out a little flat and didn't play any defense," Ike Austin said of the diminished second-half lead.

"You've always got to be happy about a win," he said, but that isn't going to stop him from looking for guys who are going to give their best effort on defense as well as when they have the ball.

Going undefeated in league play so far also means Utah has a target on its back, Ike said.

"Now you're hunted," he said. "You've got to know how to play through adversity."

Snowbears fans got a chance to see another former Jazzman besides ike Austin on the court Thursday. Austin signed former teammate David Benoit to a contract last week, and Benoit suited up for the first time with the team against the Blackhawk.

"He's played in Salt Lake City, and our fans know him," Ike said. Benoit struggled in the game, going 0-for-6 from the field, and finishing with just one point.